Chapter 5: Kill the Zombifier

Tatsumi pulled his Incursio sword out again. He would end this here and now. The air around him began to swirl in a violent orange and white flame. With his hand against the ground, he called out, "Incursio!"

Bright silver armor encased his body. A long 4 meter spear in his left arm with the sword hidden in the armor. The double barrel shotgun now forgotten on the ground with two large gashes in the metal.

The hunter pulled both sword up into a strange stance. "Now that is a neat trick. Allow me to show you my Imperial Arms." Both swords were now crossed over his back.

'Those aren't his main weapons?' Mine thought to herself as she helped Akame sit on the front porch. If she could just reach that shotgun, she could help. 'Wait! Tatsumi has a hunting rifle in the hidden bunker!' The fact that there was something close to her Pumpkin was the only choice she could think of since the shotgun was so far away. "Akame."

"Hm?" The swordswoman looked up with blood still running out of her hairline.

"If he gets pushed back, please help him. I'm going to help in my own way."

"By doing what?"

"I'm a sniper." Mine winked then stared at her lover. 'Hang on!'

Tatsumi spun the spear in his hands and glared behind the mask. "Do your worst."

His opponent grinned. "Oh I will. Behold my Imperial Arms. Yatsufusa!" He pulled another sword from within his coat. One that Akame new all to well.

"It can't be." She stared wide eyed at the sword. It was the same one that her sister Kurome wielded before it crumbled. "That sword was destroyed, how did you?"

"Anything's possible with a little alchemy." He chuckled. "Now, demon dragon, think you can stop this sword and it's wielder?" He lunged forward.

Tatsumi's stance swiftly changed into defense as he pulled the spear in front of him. "That sword doesn't belong to you."

"The Imperial Arms chooses a new host after the first one has died. You know that Tatsumi!" The hunter yelled as another strike hit the spear. He was referring to the fact Bulat had died and gifted Incursio to Tatsumi.

About a hundred more strikes came in the fraction of a second. Tatsumi had to keep spinning his spear around to block all the attacks. Eventually, he got a break. The spear's handle spun around and smacked the hunter's chest pushing him back.

An Incursio cladded Tatsumi took a step back to think. 'First wielder dead? That's not possible, Kurome was here the other night.' He decided to question the attacker a bit. "Did you kill the last host?"

"Of course not. I found the pieces lying on a battle field near some old ruins. I was told that it can control dead victims pierced by it. So tell me, would you like to become zombified?"

Right as another strike was about to be landed, a new presence entered the property. Using Tyrant's senses, Tatsumi could tell who all was around him. There was the hunter in front of him, Akame sitting on the sideline and Mine moving to an upstairs window with a rifle by her side. Who was the other? They felt familiar. Only then did he realize it wasn't one presence, there was two. He turned to face the newcomers only to see another armor type standing there with two little hands on it's shoulders.

The hunter realized his opponent was distracted and faced the disturbance.

Wave walked out of the tree line in his blue Grand Chariot armor. Kurome was hanging on to his back. He walked over to the porch where Akame sat and set Kurome down. "Don't get into any trouble, okay?"

"Kay." She then began to munch on a bag of cookies. Although they looked like her drug cookies, they were filled with cream. She reached the bag out to her sister. "Want some?"

Being the glutton she was, Akame gratefully took one or two out of the bag. "Thank you, Kurome."

After he concluded that they were fine, Wave joined Tatsumi. "Sup."

"Care to meet our new friend here? He has a very interesting Imperial Arms."

"What's that... Oh no." Wave noticed the angle of the sword and the black sheath as the one his wife used to wield. "How is that thing still around? We broke it, remember?"

Tatsumi glared at their opponent. "Yea, I remember. He said they used alchemy to put it back together. I imagine it's not nearly as strong as he thinks it is."

"Alright. Just don't let Kurome get hit. That's my main goal."

"I'll protect Mine and Akame." They bumped armored fists and turned to face the challenger. "You ready?"

"If you're done talking, then sure. I'll get a heftier reward for more kills." The villain's eyes focused on the newcomer's friend that was sitting with Akame. "That's not right."

Both the others looked at Kurome, then back to him. "What isn't?"

"She's dead. The records all say that Kurome, wielder of Yatsufusa, is dead. That's why this sword came to me." He looked down at Yatsufusa.

Wave moved away from Tatsumi and stood in front of Kurome. "You'll have to kill me if you want Kurome!"

"Fine by me. Then this sword will truly be..." He was cut off by a gunshot. Then a large spout of crimson blood came from his chest.

Tatsumi tracked the bullet's line towards it's shooter to reveal what he'd been waiting on. Mine was looking out of an upstairs window with her fairly large rifle in her hands. He'd bought it as a replacement for Pumpkin, but the power was no match for it.

Mine grinned triumphantly as she loaded another round in the chamber. Even though she'd hit a chest shot, she was going to put one in his head just to be sure.

Akame had Kurome pulled to her and covered her ears. She knew that her sister had been through Hell and seen so much more blood than what was right here, but she didn't want this to add to her night terrors. Kurome had suffered enough.

Wave didn't move from his sentry position in front of the two swordswomen. He would not be caught off guard. Instead, Tatsumi approached the fallen one on the ground. He removed his armored helmet and looked with his own eyes. There was still a pulse, he could see it. He looked up to see Mine still in the window. Silently calling another shot for his head, he stepped back.

Mine pulled the trigger and blood spilled from the man's head. The hunter was dead. Yatsufusa lay in his hand still unsheathed.

"So much for a bounty hunter." Wave finally moved to take off his armor and sat next to Kurome. He held her hand and she in turn held him.

As she made the turn from sister to husband, Kurome caught a glimpse of it. Her old sword laid on the ground. "No. No, no, no, no!" Her eyes went wide as the visions she saw at night were flashing before her now.

Akame moved quickly to grab the sword as Wave held his shivering wife. "I'll take it to Night Raid. Boss will know what to do with it."

"Are you okay to make the trip?" Tatsumi asked as his armor dematerialized. "I can go."

"No, I started this. I need to finish it." She'd said the same thing when she went to duel Kurome. "Take her inside, I'll be back later." She took off into the forest.

Wave carried his crying wife inside to rest. She still suffered from nightmares from the drugs she'd taken as well as Yatsufusa's curse and dealt with the lasting effect of withdrawals. It was going to take time, but Wave was going to be her shield and sword.

Tatsumi looked around him. Wave and Kurome were making their way inside, Akame had just raced off towards Night Raid, and the would be assassin dead on the ground. The only one left was... "Mine." He looked to the second story window and found no one there. "She must've come back down already." He walked inside to find his assessment correct. Mine was sitting on the couch trying to sooth Kurome. Wave had gone into the kitchen for some water. Tatsumi sat next to his girlfriend. "That was one hell of a shot."

"That's the motto of a sniper," Mine grinned. "One shot, one kill."

"You fired twice."

She blushed a bit. "W-Well, you wanted me to make sure, so I did." She crossed her arms and pouted.

Tatsumi raised his hand and rubbed her head. "Thank you, Mine. I trust you implicitly, but you can never be too careful."

The fact her husband-to-be's hand was on her head made her smile. "You're welcome."

After Akame returned, she stayed right at her sister's side. She never once left. Wave was also by her side but he tried not to get in her way, despite being Kurome's husband. He knew that Akame was a very serious girl, especially when it came to family.

Mine and Tatsumi had since gone back to their bedroom, leaving the sisters and Wave in the living room to relax after the battle. Even if the physical strength wasn't gone, the mental stress took a toll. All the stress was not good for the baby so they were going to take a nap to calm her down.

"Tatsumi?" Mine asked as she laid on his chest.

"Hmm."

"What would you have done if he'd, you know... got one of us?"

He took a second to think. That wasn't a pleasant thought to have. The image of his lover or his sister dying in front of him scared him a bit, but he still smiled. "I don't think that would have happened."

"But if it did?"

"But it didn't."

"I know, but if it did?"

Seeing as he wasn't getting out of this, Tatsumi sighed. "I don't know, Mine. I would surely be sad if one of you didn't come out alive."

She leaned a bit closer. "You'll always protect me, right?"

"Always. Forever and always. You're the person that I love most in this world, Mine. I will never let anyone hurt you."

With her question answered and her anxiety settled, Mine began to nod off. "Good, cause if you fail, I'll kick your ass."

"I don't think you're in a condition to kick anyone's ass." He chuckled which got Mine mad.

"Are you calling me fat?!"

Realizing his mistake, Tatsumi recoiled from her, "O-Of course not, Mine. I-I would never call you fat."

"You better not." She pouted and rolled over to face away from him. Part of her wanted to apologize for her outburst, but she was too swayed by her hormones to make a good judgement. Before she could formulate a plan, she felt a hand on the small of her back. It was warm and comforting to her cold skin.

Tatsumi rubbed his hand up and down to sooth his lover's nerves. Mine tried to roll over, but he slid behind her to keep her still. "Shhh... Just relax. You've had a stressful day, both of you." He placed his other hand on her stomach. "She's got a little more to go."

"You mean, he has a little more to go."

"We still need names. For a boy or a girl."

"You're right. Akame interrupted us last time."

He grinned cheekily. "Suppose we need two names."

It took a minute, but Mine fully registered what he was implying. "I swear, if you knocked me up with twins, so help me God I will..." She didn't get to finish as her baby kicked her. It wasn't the strongest feeling in the world, but it was something new. "Tatsumi, feel!" She pulled his hand to her stomach. "They're kicking."

"I feel it. She's very strong, much like her mother."

"You mean he's strong like his father."

"Are we really going to keep debating?"

"Until you concede and agree we're having a little boy, yes." Mine wiggled closer to him.

Tatsumi couldn't help but smile. He'd seen women in his village be very mean during pregnancy. Mine just happened to stay the same. "I love you."

"W-What brought that on?" She asked as her lover held her tight.

"You said what would I do if I'd lost you or Akame out there. Truth is, if it was you, I couldn't live any longer. I'd become just as cold as Akame was when we first met. Probably go back to killing until fate catches up with me." His breath was warm on her neck despite how dark his words were. "I don't know if I could go on living."

Mine snuggled into the blanket in front of her and his body behind her. "I felt like that when you left."

"You mean when I left yesterday?"

She managed to spin around in his arms and squeeze herself between them. "I was so scared, scared that you'd never come through those doors again, scared that our baby wasn't going to have a father. Then Akame told me that she'd stay. She was so gung ho to go after you that she already had her sword on her hip. But she stopped and she handed me the ring. You made me a promise that you would come home and marry me and she trusted you to come home."

Tatsumi rested his chin on the top of her head and rocked side to side. "That's right. I still have to marry you, so I can't go dying on you, now can I?"

Caught up in her emotions, Mine's eyes began to water as she sobbed into her lover's chest. He was her home now. No matter where they were, or how far they were apart, he would always come home to her. He made her a promise.

Later that evening, Mine awoke to laughing and giggling coming from the living room. Tatsumi wasn't by her side so she figured that he was either the cause of the laughter or was having just as much fun. Probably both. Heaving herself out of bed, she made her way out into the living room where she saw Tatsumi flapping his Tyrant wings and doing all kinds of silly moves with Kurome and Akame just laughing. Come to think of it, she never had seen Akame laugh before.

"Feeling better?" Mine asked as she sat next to Kurome. Her question was projected to both sisters since it was a rough day for both.

"I'm great!" Kurome kept laughing at Tatsumi like a little kid.

Akame, on the other hand, was calmer in her answer. "We're fine, thank you." She then turned back to the boy she liked and smiled. 'Don't ever do something that stupid again, Tatsumi'.

The sun soon set and Akame and Tatsumi were made to report to Night Raid HQ for debriefing on what happened. Mine stayed home since she was no longer apart of Night Raid and Kurome stayed with her since she didn't need to be out and about right now.

It didn't take long for the duo to finish their report to Najenda and start the journey back home. As they walked, the topic of Akame's living situation came up.

"So, where do you plan on living now? Night Raid isn't a thing anymore with what we just saw." The old base had overhauled into a military training camp so that was no place to call home.

Akame looked up to the stars. "I don't know. I honestly don't plan to stick around. I want to cure Murasame, but..."

"But..." Tatsumi finished, "you don't know if there even is a cure. You could spend the rest of your natural life searching and not find anything." With a quick move of his hand, he snagged Murasame from her belt. "This is your cure." He then held the sword behind his back away from her. "Akame, hang up Murasame. You don't need it anymore."

Instead of reaching for it, she stared at him. "Murasame is a part of me."

"I get that, the same way that Incursio is a part of me, but you don't need to keep using it. I used Incursio to protect my family. You should only use it to protect yourself." He then handed back to her. "I meant what I said back then, when we finished the house. You're more than welcome to live with us if you want to. Murasame can be placed in the hidden arsenal and even mounted if you want. That way you can reach it." As she wrapped her hand around it, he hugged her. "I just don't want to see you hurting anymore."

Akame couldn't remember many times in her life when she cried. She remembered having to be strong for her sister and never show weakness. All of her friends in Night Raid that were no longer with them, she never shed a tear. The day she almost lost Tatsumi, was the first time in many years. Then again when he woke up from his coma. Now, when she was safely in his arms. Akame's deep red eyes leaked out tears as she gripped her hands over his back. "I... I will."